Separate the crowns by size, and plant those of similar size together for best uniformity in spear size at harvest. Spread super phosphate fertilizer 0- as a band in the furrow at a rate of 2.
Place the crowns 12 to 14 inches apart in the furrow. Planting too closely can cause small spears. Wider planting results in larger spears but lower total yield. In loose soils, plant the crowns 6 to 12 inches deep; in heavier soils, plant them 4 to 6 inches deep Fig. Cover the furrow with 1 inch of compost topped by 2 to 3 inches of soil. Firm the soil around the roots. Over the season, fill the furrows gradually as the shoots grow.
This covers small weeds, and they die from lack of light. By the end of the first season, the furrow should reach its normal level Fig. Control weeds, but do not injure the crowns. If the crowns are planted deeply, you can cultivate the bed with garden tools or tiller do not till too deep without damaging the crowns. An alternative planting method is to plant the crowns at the suggested depth and immediately fill in the furrow with soil to its original level. Using this method, you do not need to gradually cover the crowns with soil, as long as the soil is not compacted over the newly planted crowns.
Figure 1. It takes 2 to 3 years from the time the crown is planted until the bed is in full production. When conditions are favorable, buds arise from the crown and develop into edible spears.
If not harvested, the spears will develop into fernlike stalks. From these stalks, the mature plant manufactures food and stores it in the underground crown. This reserve supplies the energy necessary to produce spears the following year.
For established beds, scatter 2 pounds of fertilizer or its equivalent per 20 feet of row before growth begins in the spring, late January, or early February in most areas of Texas.
After the last harvest, apply an additional 1 to 2 pounds per 20 feet of row. If available, use a nitrogen fertilizer such as at this time. Always water the fertilizer into the soil. Asparagus plants need frequent, deep watering.
Water the beds thoroughly, and allow the top 1 inch of soil to dry before watering again. The time varies from 3 to 5 days, depending on soil type and temperature. In sandy soils, asparagus roots can reach 10 feet deep if adequate soil moisture is available. Asparagus competes poorly with weeds. For asparagus to grow vigorously, weeds must be controlled in the first 1 to 2 years of its establishment. To suppress weeds, spread a 4- to 6-inch-thick layer of organic mulch, such as hay, stray, compost, wood chips, or grass clippings.
Asparagus beds require little care after the first 2 years of establishment. Keep weeds pulled or hoed from the beds. To avoid damaging the spears, control weeds early before the spears emerge. Till the soil when fertilizer is applied early in the season before the spears begin growing Fig. Figure 2. Till the soil early in the season before the spears emerge. They need several growing seasons to grow and develop, until they have the stored energy needed for supplying you with a reliable and abundant crop of tender shoots each spring.
The shoots which mature and become full-grown plants supply the root system with energy and nutrients through their leaves. Full-grown asparagus plants reach as high as 4 to 5 feet 1. Asparagus plants need the most water after they have produced their yearly crop of shoots and some have matured into tall, ferny-leaved stalks. Fertilize plants in early spring before the shoots first appear during the first few years after planting.
After that, fertilize after harvest in June, applying approximately 1 pound. As summer turns to fall, the plants begin to die-back, and irrigation can be reduced and then stopped altogether, allowing the roots to go into a dormant stage for winter.
Cut dead foliage off of the plants at the ground level, and mulch the bed for winter. The majority of those who had experienced asparagus pee themselves were able to correctly identify the substance, while those that claimed their urine did not smell strangely after consuming asparagus were not. Chickens can help farm asparagus. Rick and Marilyn Stanley of Chick Farm in Wells, Maine have conducted experiments on the subject and heartily recommend the practice.
In their study, weed growth was reduced up to 90 percent after releasing their chickens in an asparagus field to forage — with no adverse effects to the crop. The Stanleys recommend a flock of about a dozen hens per square feet of asparagus. Though productivity has slowed in recent years, at last count there were still 57, hectares of asparagus in China.
The next closest competitors? Peru has 27, hectares in production, while Germany is close behind with 22, The United States ranks fifth with about 14, hectares, virtually all of which is in California, Washington and Michigan. The United States pays Peruvian farmers to grow asparagus instead of coca, depressing the global price of asparagus and making it an unprofitable proposition for American farmers. Instead, the lack of pigment in albino spears results from the absence of sunlight.
Farmers pile soil over the emerging spears and cut them off from below to produce the ghostly novelty. Purple asparagus, on the other hand, is a genetic variety. Every spear is hand-picked just as the tip begins to show through the surface of the soil. Farm workers carefully excavate around each spear to a depth of nine inches and clip it at the base. It must be placed immediately in a dark box so it stays white. Interestingly, white asparagus turns pink when exposed to sunlight, though there is currently no market for this color of asparagus.
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